25
The sun touched Canterlot, beaming down light and warmth causing the evening condensation that clung to the land to evaporate into banks of low hanging mist. The streets of the city began to bustle with some activity in the early hours of the morning. Bakeries fired up their ovens, flooding the streets with the tantelising scent of baked goods. Shop owners opended up shutters and re-arranged window displays.
High above the streets in the highest palace tower Princess Celestia stood – her ever faithful phoenix huddled beside a mug of coffee, keeping it warm in the cold autumn morning. The princess’s mane and tail withdrew from the horizons in a similar display to Luna’s twilight, only this spectacle brought a burst of colours to the sky rather than a blanket of night.
Luna on the other hand was nowhere to be seen.
In her bedroom – a tower neighbouring the highest in the palace – the alicorn of the night dropped forward and hit her bed’s soft matress with a distinct ‘phlumph! ’ Several goose-feathers and silk blankets plumed into the air before settling gently on the princess’ back.
She was sprawled diagonally across the bed, her chin having missed the pillows completely. Her face was buried in the duvet, and her eyes were shut tight.
At least, they were – untill something hit the bed beside her.
A pair of paws sank into the sheets beside her head, drawing a groan from the tired princess. As her eyelids peeled open, the heavy bags under her eyes became even more evident. Shifting her gaze upward, she was greeted by doggy-breath.
Bungee inched his face closer to hers, panting heavily enough to blast the alicorn’s face with hot breath. His tongue rolled out the side of his maw as he seemed to watch her expectantly.
Luna sighed at the sight of the German Shepherd she had taken home last night.
“Of course,” she muttered to herself, remembering. “You must be hungry.”
With a long tired groan, Luna managed to get her hooves under herself and push herself into a standing position. With her head so low she was practcially dragging her chin over the ground she walked off the bed and Bungee bounded excitedly to her side. As the dog ran he snatched up the squeaky ball he’d so lovingly carried thus far.
Ordering him to sit, Luna quickly tweaked her magic over Bungee’s vest and worked to figure out how to take it off. She imagined he might sleep more comfortably without it. The plastic buckles clicked as they let go and she opened zippers before tugging the vest off over the dog’s head with her kinesis, leaving only his collar with nametag behind. Levitating it onto her writing desk, the princess quickly tore open one of the pouches with a hoof and produced a bag of food.
Licking his chops, Bungee hurriedly shuffled closer to Luna’s side, watching with rapt attention as Luna produced his food-bowl and poured a measured helping of food. Turning with the bowl balanced in her magic, Luna slowly placed it down next to her desk. She half expected Bungee to have tackled her by now, but the same way they had played in the Everfree Forest, Bungee waited for the order to eat.
Luna smiled a little seeing the dog crane his neck to sniff the edge of his bowl. But he didn’t dare leap on it without permission.
“Okay, Bungee. You can-...” Luna’s eyes widened.
She had barely finished the final syllable of his name when the German Shepherd was face down in the bowl, happily scarfing down his breakfast. Smiling with a shake of her head, Luna was reminded of the times she’d spotted the pegasus named Soarin from the Wonderbolts enjoying a good apple pie.
As Bungee had his breakfast, Luna turned her attention to the dog’s gear laying on her desk. Biting her bottom lip, she wondered how to proceed. Her eyes shifted downwards at Bungee happily eating his breakfast before Luna’s horn began to glow with magic. Pulling up a chair and sitting down, the princess decided to rifle through the pouches on the vest again; properly this time.
She pried the flattened projectile out of the armour-layer, then placed it on the dark stained surface of the writing-desk. Shifting her collection of crumpled parchment, empty bottles of ink and dull quills to one side, she then opened all the pouches and pulled out everything within.
She organised everything according to size, and then re-categorised what she recognised and what she did not. To the left she found herself looking at simple and obvious things, like Bungee’s water bottle and food as well as what looked like a grooming and dental kit. On the right half of the desk she had filed some inexplicable devices, as well as the vest itself among what looked like a plastic cartridge with metal diodes – marked with plus and minus mathmatical symbols respectively – and some kind of plastic brick.
Curiously Luna pulled on the antennae that sat on the dog’s back. It was like some kind of hinged unicorn’s horn, only a scan produced no kind of magic Luna was familiar with. Looking to the side of the antennae she spotted what looked like a suitcase handle of sorts. Only it was loose at the front, and hinged at the back. Taking it in one hoof she gave the handle a good tug, causing it to snap upwards with with sharp ‘click!’
Blinking, the princess found herself looking into a square glass face, behind which was a circular lens. It was like the lens of a common camera, only much more sophisticated than anything she had seen in Equestria.
Putting down the vest, Luna picked up the object that looked like a brick adorned with buttons and a pair of black straps. Holding it in her magical grip, she pressed the device agiasnt her right fetlock and worked the straps around her front leg. Curiously she flexed the antennae similar to that on Bungee’s vest before she found a big round green button on the side.
“Green means go,” Luna mused with an optomistic grin, and with the edge of her hoof she pressed it.
The device hummed. The rectangular depression lit from black to a glowing light grey. And amoment later Luna found herself looking in a mirror – sort of. She was looking at herself, but she wasn’t looking at herself looking at herself like she would be if she were looking in a mirror. She was looking at herself with her gaze angled downward at her foreleg.
With wide eyes Luna darted her gaze upward and stared into the camera lens on Bungee’s vest before looking down at the device strapped to her leg. She went on like that for a good long while; even after the crunching sounds of Bungee’s eating were replaced by a pronounced burp.
While the dog stood patiently watching what Luna was doing, the alicorn princess slowly came to a realisation the device on her leg was able to project what the camera lens on Bungee’s vest was seeing. Testing some of the other buttons, she was able to adjust the zoom, angle of the gaze, lay some strange light and colour filters over the image. And eventually she figured out with the device somepony could see what Bungee was seeing, without nessicarily being in the same room with him.
“Your owner must be some sort of spy,” Luna thought out loud with a blank monotone. Even as she said it she felt the theory was terribly cheesy.
Turning off the device, Luna packed everything back into Bungee’s vest and left the gear on her desk. She’d let the dog go without it for a while so he’d be more comfortable. Picking up his bowl and leaving it next to the laundry basket for the chamber-maids to clean later, Luna gave Bungee a quick belly-rub and retreated once more to her bed.
Just like before, she tiredly threw herself forward and landed with a ‘phlumph,’ this time managing to land her face in the pillows. Her eyes were shut and she swam in a relaxing darkness letting sleep take her.
‘SQUEAK!’
Luna’s heart skipped a beat as her eyes jerked open again. At the exact same time Bungee landed on all fours on the bed beside Luna, dropping his ball on the pillow next too her head. before Luna could even think of reprimanding him, Bungee leaned in close and nuzzled the side of her face with his cold wet nose.
“What the-...” Luna opened her mouth to say something more only to have the dog plant a long lick right across the side of the pony’s face. “ACK! Bungee!”
With an excitable groan the dog backed off, his rear legs slipping over the edge of the bed, but his front paws still propped up on the matress. His bark that followed was a high pitched variation, as if to say; C’mon! What are you doing laying down? We got stuff to do!
Looking between the ball on her pillow and the dog watching her closely, Luna gave a long sigh. Bungee was a healthy athletic dog, that much was obvious. And what else should have been obvious was to attain that health and athleticism he must have had a strict training and exercise regime.
“I’m not getting any sleep untill you have morning exercise, am I?” the princess figured.
Bungee panted, seemingly smiling as if to confirm the pony’s suspicions.
Whereas sun touched Canterlot; the sun did not reach a certain little building in the Everfree Forest.
Built far deeper into the woods than any pony dared tread – deeper than even Zecora dared explore – the house was built with natural stone and cemented with twisted grey thorny brambles and vibrant green moss. The low walls were balanced at uneven angles that tapered towards the flat roof made of mouldy logs laid directly across the top with ferns and other weeds growing across. There was a single chimney spitting smoke into the air that hung low in the forest causing a smelly haze to blanket the area.
There were no windows. There were no pleasant features bar a muddy stairway leading down into house that looked more like a compound than a home. There was only the reek of death surrounding it, coupled with the visual aids of crucified avian wildlife nailed to the walls and the skulls of various other animals sat on pikes. Blood stained the porch like something no longer clinging to its mortal coil was dragged inside.
Even in autumn, some of the canopy leaves stubbornly clung to the claw like branches overhead, blocking the morning sun and shrouding the building in gloomy shadows. Inside was similarly gloomy – and grim.
Oil lamps and a fire in the hearth cast harsh flickering shadows throughout the compound. Wooden dividers compartmentalised the space inside, with a basement stairway leading deeper into the earth in the far corner-room. The main chamber had an uneven earthen floor, and smelled heavily of decay. Tables and work surfaces were built from a mixture of wood and bones of larger creatures. The walls were lined with shelves, stacked with various alchemical ingredients as well as multi-coloured specimen jars home to preserved... pieces – for lack of better description. More skulls and decayed wildlife served as décor, providing a rather nice homely feel for Grogar of Tambelon.
His little compound reminded him of home. It was his own little personal slice of heaven. Though all he was missing was the throne that gave him ultimate power over Equestria and all ponykind. But that was a work in progress. First things first, his conquest had to begin. But one could not conquer without an army.
And that was where his frustration lay.
“Worthless!” the stout ram bellowed. Rearing back on his rear legs, he locked his hooves on the nearest table and flipped it over sending the surgical tools atop it skittering across the room in a glittering display.
“Worthless!” Grogar repeated, whipping around with his angry eyes aglow with a bloody aura and a hot mist huffing from his flaring nostrils.
Seeing his rage, several of his experimental minions cringed and retreated shyly. The zombie ponies akin to those he raised in the Everfree clearing last night – shortly before Princess Luna decimated them with naught but her vocal chords – managed to limp and shamble out of the way as their master barged through their midst. Had they not moved he surely would have trampled them into pieces just for the fun of it.
“Unacceptable! UNACCEPTABLE!” the ram bellowed, giving into the habit of monologuing, even if it was only for himself. It certainly wasn’t for his witless minions. “Damnable princess with her damnable voice! She tore right through my latest experimental warriors! Months I worked on them. These undead creatures are WORTHLESS!”
The small brass bell hanging from the thick leather collar strung around Grogar’s neck began to glow a putrid green colour. A similar aura surrounded the contents laying on one of his surgical beds where a partially dissected zombie pony lay writhing in confusion. With a crash all the individual pieces were sent flying across the room in an attempt to ease the ram’s frustration.
He had just left the head laying there. Looking down at his scattered body parts, the zombie pony rolled what was left of his eyes and sighed deeply.
In the meantime Grogar charged through the midst of his clumsy minions again. Only this time a three legged pony wasn’t quite fast enough to move, and her face became acquainted with one of Grogar’s thick, curled horns. Collapsing to the ground with stars circling her half decayed head, she was quickly picked up by her fellow zombies. Not much use, since she seemed to lose another leg as they dusted her off.
They quickly hid the freshly dismembered limb behind their backs and gave innocent decayed smiles as Grogar whirled to inspect them with narrowed eyes. The two-legged zombie mare keeled over and slammed face-first into the floor. Turning back to his glass display case home to a collection of old artefacts, the ram tore open one of the doors and reached inside towards one of his more recently acquired relics.
“Damn you, Tirek. And damn your Rainbow of Darkness.” – Grogar lifted a small leather pouch in one cloven hoof then threw it across the room with a ‘hrmph!’ – “It was not worth trading my soul.” Rubbing his goatee thoughtfully, the ram’s thick lips twisted into a small smile around the sharp tusks and fangs that protruded from mouth. “But at least I’ll savour the stupid look on his face the day he tries to cash in.”
One of the zombie ponies with both his bloodshot eyes still intact looked cross eyed at the Rainbow of Darkness now embedded in his squishy, partially melted face. Impatiently Grogar walked over and bucked the zombie pony in the flank, tearing the pouch from the zombie’s face with his putrid telekinesis.
Looking at the ancient artefact of evil, the demonic ram sighed as he mused, “These decayed monsters are no good. Incompetent, slow, brainless and weak! I need to try fresher corpses. But there are so few in the Everfree Forest. And the graveyards are all sanctified. That will not do. Not at all.”
That was when thunder and lightning filled his demesne of decay and demise. Grogar was startled, mainly since he had not conjured either, despite the urge to in his rage and disappointment.
And then he saw his minions fall. They dropped one at a time in explosions of gelatine and shards of bone. Their heads popped like over-inflated balloons spreading more of a mess across the trashed laboratory. With each flash and bang another zombie pony would fall until only one was left.
The two legged mare was still writhing face down on the ground, her butt stuck up in the air as she tried to shamble around without forelegs.
Whipping around, Grogar looked to the entrance of his home. On the muddy steps leading down to where his compound was dug into the forest floor stood a figure, framed in the daylight that began to spill into the space. The silhouette was like one he had seen only once before.
Suspicion was painted all over Grogar’s face as he felt a very old instinctive dread rise up from his gut as he identified the silhouette.
“Need fresh corpses? Why not create some?” the figure asked as it stepped into the lamplight, causing the shadows to peel back and reveal his unique features.
Straight bipedal form, black and silver hair with dark eyes, hands with digits – five on each – and clad in sandy coloured fatigues. There was a weapon in both hands – a pistol, but unlike any pistol Grogar had ever seen. The barrel was not a metal tube with wood furnishings but almost black shaped with a black finish. The flintlock hammer was non-existent, boggling the ram’s mind how it even fired in the first place. And then there was the fact it had fired several shots accurately in quick succession, it was clearly a weapon advanced well beyond anything Equestria had developed thus far.
Grogar’s suspicions of what the owner of the weapon was were confirmed in an instant. The figure was indeed human. Human like the one who had defeated him before all those aeons ago. A time before Equestria had formed. A time before Princess Celestia and Luna ruled the day and night skies. Back when Grogar was trying to conquer Ponyland.
Megan. The girl’s name still left a bitter aftertaste on his tongue, so he did not dare say it.
Though this human before the ram was not like her. A male, he was taller, wider and definitely older. Clad in fatigues obviously intended to be uniform, designed to protect, camouflage and pose intimidation on foes. The design certainly worked in all aspects, Grogar had to admit.
Though Grogar had to wonder if he felt intimidated by the human’s stance, uniform and skill… or perhaps he simply hated humans of all shapes and forms since his defeat at the hands of the Megan girl.
Though this human didn’t seem to be advancing on him. He didn’t seem interested in harming Grogar, but simply dispatched his minions to hammer his offer home.
Why not create some corpses?
Was the human offering to help him build an army? Or was this some sort of ruse? Grogar wasn’t sure, but never-the-less he found himself squinting with intrigue.
“Continue…”
The same way the Canterlot tower was home to some strict schedules in the evening time; around midday the Canterlot gardens would abide by similar schedule.
In the midday sun – weather permitting of course – Princess Celestia would schedule an hour of free time. She would always sit on the same garden chair at the iron table with a seat set opposite her. She always chose the same white tablecloth with rose-red silk napkins, and always ordered the same brunch be brought up from the royal kitchens.
Scones freshly baked that morning with sweet whipped cream, strawberry preserve and butter. And she always made sure to have a bowl with ice-cold milk and a box of cereal set opposite her for the inevitable arrival of her dear younger sister.
Luna would often join her at exactly eleven o’clock, having her own breakfast close to midday. However, much to Celestia’s shock, it had been Luna who made it to the gardens first, waiting for the older princess with her scones all laid out and ready.
It was odd to find Luna out of bed early, but it mattered little. After all, it wasn’t the oddest thing to happen that day.
Their brunch meetings were – in an official capacity – a debriefing period. It was time Luna would normally use to report any disturbances in the night, or any other issues to Celestia so she’d be up to speed on what was happening in Equestria under the stars. Personally, Celestia preferred to consider their meetings a civil meal shared by siblings allowing them to socialise. After all, their different sleeping schedules and varying duties would often separate them, so Celestia cherished every moment she could spend with Luna.
And normally Celestia would have plenty to say, eagerly chatting with her younger sister, often drawing conversation away from the nightly report. Though today…
Today she had no words…
“… so I thought it might be nothing. It turned out to be some undead creatures,” Luna finished reporting. “Likely another of Grogar’s necromantic experiments. They were dealt with easily; there was no need to concern you at all hours of the night. I hope you’re alright with this.”
“Uh-huh.” Celesta didn’t say anything more, her scone laying forgotten on the china dish set before her. She couldn’t find the words as her large eyes remained fixed on the tennis ball fixed in her sister’s kinetic grip.
Her eyes shifted left to follow the chew-toy, then darted right as Luna absently threw it across the garden lawn. The white alicorn watched in amazement as the German Shepherd standing vigil by Luna’s side darted off after the ball.
“Celestia?” Luna asked finally noticing her sister’s trance. “Are you alright?”
“Yes!” Princess Celestia confirmed loudly, snapping out of her daze as the dog brought back the ball and dropped it beside Luna’s chair. “I’m simply concerned is all. This seems quite serious.”
“I agree.” Luna nodded.
“After all, this has gone on too long.”
“Indeed.”
“It’s quite shocking, really.”
“Of course it is.”
“I mean, are the pet shops and kennels even open after midnight?”
“I kno-… uh…” Princess Luna blinked hard a few times with confusion. “Pardon?”
“This is indeed a very dire situation,” Celestia continued gravely. “After all; look at this.” She pointed down at the German Shepherd, smiling broadly with a mixture of glee and disbelief. “YOU HAVE A PET!”
Luna sighed, slapping a hoof over her face. “Ugh.” Of course, after everything she had reported about Grogar and zombie ponies in the Everfree Forest; Celestia only came away with the fact Luna had a canine friend.
“What’s his name?” Celestia asked eagerly, leaning over to scratch the dog’s ear. He let her, panting happily.
“This is Bungee,” Luna introduced impatiently. “What about Grogar? Shouldn’t we do something about that menace?”
“Grogar may be evil, but he’s also without ambition. His experiments will remain exactly that. Experiments,” Celestia said unworried. “Not to worry. He hasn’t harmed anypony yet, and he doesn’t have the spine to. We can handle him in due time. Why a dog?” she suddenly asked changing the subject. “Don’t get me wrong, he’s beautiful. But wouldn’t you prefer a companion who could fly and keep up with you?”
“He has a harness, I can carry him with ease if I have to. Besides, Bungee is surprisingly quick on his paws. Sister, we really need to focus on Grogar-…”
“Where did you get him? Was Fluttershy up late last night?”
Luna sighed explosively, throwing Bungee’s ball again and letting her chin hit the table with a thud that rattled the china. There was clearly no chance they’d talk about what to do about Grogar until she got this out of her older sister’s system.
“No, I found him.” Luna explained. “He was cornered by some zombie ponies. I searched the forest thoroughly, but I couldn’t find his owner. Perhaps he wandered off. So I took him home to take care of him.”
Celestia’s expression changed as she watched Bungee come back with his ball, dropping it by the older alicorn’s side this time. Celestia’s horn glowed with golden light as she plucked up the ball in her own magical aura and threw it for the dog.
Celestia wasn’t smiling anymore. In fact, she looked remorseful.
“Are you sure you should keep him, Luna?” she asked.
Luna’s eyes widened with panic as Bungee came running back. Jumping down from her seat, the princess quickly wrapped her forelegs around the dog, hugging him tight against her chest. Curiously Bungee looked up at her and licked her chin.
“I remembered to feed him!” Luna assured like a panicked foal sensing the stray puppy that followed her home was about to be sent away. “I can take care of him! Why can’t I keep him?”
Celestia smiled warmly, closing her eyes and shaking her head calmly. “That’s not what I meant, Luna,” she said soothingly. “I meant; he has a collar. He is well fed, well groomed and well taken care of. He clearly belongs to somepony already.”
Casting her eyes downward, Luna gave a sad nod as she sighed, “I know.”
“And they’re probably worried to death.”
“I know!” Luna nodded more vigorously. “I was going to take him to Ponyville today and ask around. I was going to hang up posters too.”
Celestia smiled warmly, a little pride for her sister’s sense of responsibility swelling up in her chest. “It is for the best, Luna… but,” – the taller alicorn cocked an eyebrow, raising a hoof to her crooked grin – “taking him to a kennel might be unpleasant. Until somepony comes forward, you could of course keep taking care of him.”
Princess Luna’s face brightened to rival the sun’s summer-time glare. “Really!? Oh, thankyou-thankyou-thankyou, ‘Tia!” Luna cried as she leapt up and bounded off across the garden, beckoning Bungee to follow.
With an excited bark the dog galloped after Luna as she went to have some posters printed and organise a chariot to take them to Ponyville. Celestia rose to her hooves tempted to follow.
Though sensing she wouldn’t be able to keep up she instead opted to call after her sister; “Just so long as you clean up after him!”
Even as she said it, Celestia took one step and her hoof landed in something soft and wet. Closing her eyes with a shudder, she didn’t dare look down for fear of what she’d stepped in.
That better be a cupcake…
After weapons were holstered and they sat down over a cup of root-tea, Grogar found his fear and mistrust of the human grossly misplaced. This ‘Rourke’ fellow – as he had introduced himself – was rather civil. Objective, formal and serious. But civil. He clearly had an agenda in mind. But that was alright.
Grogar had one too.
“… thus my home, Tambelon remains in Tartarus,” Grogar finished telling of his previous stint in the world of ponies. A tale of how he was thwarted by the colourful bastards and a human girl who had come ‘over the rainbow,’ “and I have escaped the pit into Equestria millennia later by the skin of my teeth.”
“Quite a story, sir,” Lieutenant Elliot Rourke said watching Grogar’s last zombie minion. The ram had grafted the mare’s third leg back on and balanced a tray housing an earthenware tea-set on her back. Gripping his cup of tea between two fingers he was about to take a sip when he noticed the zombie mare was drooling – thanks mainly to a lack of a bottom-jaw – as she gave him bedroom eyes. Cocking an eyebrow he quickly turned away from the zombie as she hobbled off. “You obviously miss your home,” he added trying to sound casual.
“Oh, Hades; I do. I see it every time I close my eyes,” Grogar admitted sipping his own cup of foul smelling roots soaked in hot water. “The streets are paved with the skulls of foals. The canals of bile flow freely through the loughs. And the drapes. Oh, the drapes! We’re famous for them. Forged with only the finest quality pony flesh.”
“Sounds like a...” – Rourke paused to grimace – “nice, place.”
“Yes, I do miss it. And it is pleasantly putrid this time of year. But one day. One day I’ll taste the blood of the princesses and raise my home from the pit once more,” the ram added with a dark whisper. Realising he was rambling at his guest however, Grogar remembered the human’s initial offer when he entered the ram’s home and decided to move the conversation along. “But enough about me. What about you; my hideous and murderous friend? Why are you here?”
“Like you, just trying to save my home. There’s something here I need. Something that could end a war,” Rourke informed formally, shifting his rifle out of his lap and to his side. The way he sat he always seemed ready to jump up and attack.
Either that or the pony-bone crafted chairs were just uncomfortable for the human.
Grogar scoffed with a twisted smile. “Yes; well don’t let the princesses catch you with those weapons. They’re not too keen on letting threats to their precious little ponies running around.”
“Princess Celestia and Luna I presume?”
Grogar nodded impressed. “You’re well versed in the area for a human. As I understand it no other humans beside Megan and her idiot friend have ever visited the world of ponies.” Grogar winced as if the name blistered his tongue.
“I keep my ear to the ground.” – Grogar frowned causing a smirk to tug Rourke’s lips – “Human expression,” Rourke quickly added.
Grogar gave an understanding nod.
“Since we’re both after the same thing, it might be beneficial if we work together,” Rourke continued to say. “I could use magic backup, and you seem to have a good grasp on it. You need fresher bodies for your minions, and I should be able to source them.”
“Yes, well my magic isn’t as powerful as that of the princesses. And my minions are still quite vulnerable as you saw yourself. But they are also completely useless against those royal Canterlot voices.” Grogar cringed at the mere mention of the princess’ mighty voice, remembering how Luna had shouted apart his latest batch – and every batch before that – without breaking a sweat. “The princesses needn’t even charge up a fireball. They can just shout my minions to pieces. As impossible as it may sound to a person like you – believe me – it’s just as impossibly infuriating to me.”
Rourke took all that in and cocked an eyebrow. “I can imagine.”
It seemed kind of impossible to him for anything to ‘shout’ a zombie to pieces. Then again, he was in the land of ponies and magic. Magic that Rourke had no grasp of, nor any power over. He could quite easily find himself outgunned.
All the more reason to have an ally with magic and an agenda that suited his. He needed Grogar on his side. He just needed to work a deal.
“How about I deal with the princesses for you, and you can turn Equestria into your own real-estate.” Rourke offered simply.
“Deal with the princesses.” Grogar deadpanned. “Are we talking about an assassination?”
Rourke nodded.
“Lovely. Though I doubt you’ll provide your services for free,” Grogar sniffed, never having heard of a humble assassin. “What are you after in return?”
Rourke grinned realising there was no pulling the wool over his horned friend’s eyes. “The Elements of Harmony,” the lieutenant admitted honestly.
That seemed to surprise Grogar. Not to the point it sent him reeling. His crimson eyes just widened significantly. “Whatever for?”
“You obviously have no use for those bits of precious in your master plan. Why I want the jewels is my own business.”
“Do you even know what it is you’re demanding?” Grogar scoffed.
“I have an inkling,” the human assured before leaning forward and holding his hand out across the table. “So, do we have an accord?”
Grogar’s expression went a little uneven. His mouth scrunched thoughtfully up to one side as he cocked an eyebrow – one eye growing much larger than the other. His more chipped hoof rubbed his woolly goatee thoughtfully as he tried to conjure a mental list of pros and cons to this deal.
He honestly had no use for the Elements of Harmony. He had intended to destroy them before launching is offensive so they wouldn’t thwart his plans. But if the princesses were both assassinated the wielders would be so distraught they might not even be able to conjure the magic to use them against him. There would be no harm in letting Rourke have his prize.
With a foul smirk, Grogar gave a firm nod. He held up one hoof, his sickly magic glow engulfing it. There was a crack of bones and pop of cartilage. His hoof changed shape, one half twisting up and warping into a clawed thumb. The other half twisted down and broke into several segments with a sound of brittle wood splitting under stress.
Growing into a set of gnarly fingers, Grogar reached out with his newly formed hand and they shook on it, initiating their partnership.
“We have an accord.”
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Uh oh, trouble.
Well this has taken a grim turn...please continue.
Such grand organizations and evil empires always have such humble beginnings.
That better be a cupcake.
Yeah I really hope that is a cupcake
oh shiiiiiit we got a problamo goin on here
what would happen if the elements where to merge with Bungee? super dog? harmony dog? sorry being theoretical about stuff
Rourke gonna go assassinate the princesses?
That's great! Now Bungee doesn't have to go look for him
!
2850363 what could happen is Bungee would become the epitome of doggy adorableness and magic, and then make all the villains get him treats and give him tummy rubs
Why shake hands with hooves? Just morph the tissue and bone to make a new hand! Lyra would approve.
i wonder what that plastic brick is for? is it for cooking...
Ughh, Zomponies? Really?
Lieutenant Rourke, you, are an idiot!
Seriously, he could just walk up to Canterlot and ask for sanities sake! With Megan and the G1 'verse beeing part of this world Celestia and Luna might be friendly towards his cause (as far as I can tell, pacifying Earth using the EoH).
Well, at least Bungee is around to prevent the assassination.
One more word to Rourke: The gates to hell are opened with the best intentions.
2853155 Well, Grogar is a necromancer.
Yup! Sure is a 'cupcake', courtesy of Bungee... Just for you Tia!
I feel the need to ask, what is the meaning behind the chapter titles?
Truly original!
OH MY GOD YOU HAVE CUTE DOGGIE TRACK PAGE BREAKS SQUEEEEEEEEEEE~
Ahem. Moar zombie ponies. Of a more...humorous variety. I guess the innocence of ponies carries over into the afterlife a bit! "Bedroom eyes," fucking lol. I can dig it so far.
But holy crap, man. Talk about an evil plan of evil! This...Grogar character I'm not quite familiar with. Apparently it's G1 stuff? How VERY interesting. I've never seen someone try to integrate G1 into a story before.
And then there's Bungee! Can't wait to see how he (inevitably) ends up stopping such nefarious plans! Oh boy, oh boy! And, I'm sorry Celestia, but I don't think that was a cupcake...
I'm also curious: what's up with the chapter names? I can see that the numbers are escalating, but as for the pattern I got nuthin.
This is the only fic I know of where its about a dog coming to Equestria, this has my interest, though i'm on the fence as to how this Rourk creep is going to help Grogar. I REALLY hope there won't be any important pony deaths. Meaning ponies of importance dying.
I just had the most amazing mental picture of Luna going Fus Ro Dah on the Zomponies.
5513405 lol yes let it be
>> CopiousAmountsOfHugs
I imagined her using RCV.
WHAT? Is Megan some kind of deep-lore MLP character? I didn't bat an eye when she showed up periodically in The Lost Element in ancient history lessons and visions of purgatory. But today I've seen her mentioned three or four separate times, particularly when I accidentally looked up Tirac from gen1.
11418096
She is the first human Mlp character 😉
Not sure if gen1 is lore to fim though
But honestly. With the fanfictions connecting them it’s kinda cool
Honestly love the idea pony’s from ponyland migrated to Equestria or ponyland was once Equestria and fell apart becoming the tribes
That last one is really good as it explains why gen1 events are not in the Equestria history books
Being lost to history